9 March 1976 — Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.9.31

Śāstrījī:

oṁ ajñāna-timirāndhasya

jñānāñjana-śalākayā

cakṣur unmīlitaṁ yena

tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ

Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. (Prabhupāda and devotees repeat) (chants verse; Prabhupāda and devotees respond)

tvaṁ vā idaṁ sad-asad īśa bhavāṁs tato ‘nyo

māyā yad ātma-para-buddhir iyaṁ hy apārthā

yad yasya janma nidhanaṁ sthitir īkṣaṇaṁ ca

tad vaitad eva vasukālavad aṣṭi-tarvoḥ

(SB 7.9.31)

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: (chants synonyms; devotees respond)

Translation: (05:55) “My dear Lordship, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the whole cosmic creation is caused by You, and the cosmic manifestation is the effect of Your energy. Although the whole cosmic creation is Yourself, still, You keep Yourself aloof from it. The conception of ‘my’ and ‘yours’ is certainly a kind of illusion, māyā. Because everything is emanating from You, it is not different from You. The manifestation is also not different from You, and the annihilation is also caused by You. In this connection, the example is of the seed and the tree, or the subtle cause and the gross manifestation.”

Prabhupāda:

tvaṁ vā idaṁ sad-asad īśa bhavāṁs tato ‘nyo

māyā yad ātma-para-buddhir iyaṁ hy apārthā

yad yasya janma nidhanaṁ sthitir īkṣaṇaṁ ca

tad vaitad eva vasukālavad aṣṭi-tarvoḥ

(SB 7.9.31)

Cause and effect, sad-asad. One disappears . . . the cause appears, disappears, and the effect comes into being. The very good example is given here, aṣṭi-tarvoḥ. Aṣṭi means “seed,” and the . . . from the aṣṭi, from the seed, a big banyan tree comes out. At that time the aṣṭi, the seed, disappears; a tree is manifestation. So this is example of sad-asat. Aṣṭi, the seed, disappears, and the tree is manifest. So the creation of God is like that. Therefore, in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, bījo ‘haṁ sarva-bhūtānām (BG 7.10). Bīja, aṣṭi, or seed, He is the root cause of everything. One seed, a small seed, grain, and hundreds of thousands trees coming out of it, and in each tree there are millions of fruits, and each fruit, there are hundreds and thousands of seed. Again, from the seed, the same creation, hundreds and thousands, millions and millions. This is God’s intelligence, how from one source so many varieties are coming out. Again, when annihilation takes place, they again go into the original seed, Kṛṣṇa. Yānti māmikam, it is said. It’s coming out.

yasyaika-niśvasita-kālam athāvalambya

jīvanti loma-vilajā jagad-aṇḍa-nāthāḥ

viṣṇur mahān sa iha yasya kalā-viśeṣo

govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

(BS 5.48)

This material creation is done by Mahā-Viṣṇu. Mahā-Viṣṇu. The original Viṣṇu, Kṛṣṇa, He has nothing to do. Na tasya kāryaṁ kāraṇaṁ ca vidyate (Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8, CC Madhya 13.65, purport). Original God—īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (BS 5.1)—He is simply playing on flute and enjoying the company of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. He has nothing to do. And how things are taking place? Creation, He’s the creator. By expansion: svāṁśa. From Kṛṣṇa the expansion is Balarāma; from Balarāma the expansion is Saṅkarṣaṇa, then Aniruddha, Pradyumna, like that, then Nārāyaṇa, then again Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna, Aniruddha, dvitīya-catur-vyūha. From this Saṅkarṣaṇa, Mahā-Viṣṇu. Therefore Mahā-Viṣṇu is described, kalā-viśeṣaḥ. Yasyaika-niśvasita-kālam athāvalambya jīvanti loma-vilajā jagad-aṇḍa-nāthāḥ, sa iha yasya kalā-viśeṣo (BS 5.48). This Mahā-Viṣṇu, from whom, by His breathing only, millions and trillions of universes are coming, and each universe there is a Brahmā, jagad-aṇḍa-nāthāḥ. Just like in this universe there is one Brahmā. He creates again so many demigods, animals, human beings in each universe. Again we create so many also. Each of us, although we are very insignificant, still in the history we find one man begets hundreds of children.

So this is creation. This is Kṛṣṇa’s creation, how things are going on. But original seed is Kṛṣṇa. Sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ, anādi (BS 5.1). He has no kāraṇa. He is not coming out of any seed. Anādi. Anādi means there is no beginning. He is eternal. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ. Sat-cit-ānanda-vigrahaḥ. So there is no creator of Kṛṣṇa, but Kṛṣṇa is the creator of everything. That is called īśvaraḥ paramaḥ, the Supreme. Everyone may be īśvara—partially. Īśvara means controller. So every one of us, we are more or less little controller. We sometimes control some little children or some disciples or some kingdom. So everyone may be controller. They are very much fond of becoming God. God means controller. So everyone can become. He is. Kṛṣṇa has given. Because we are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, so the quality of controlling must be there. Although very insignificant part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, still, the power of controlling is there, very minute quantity. This is understanding. Svāṁśa vibhināṁśa. Everyone . . . viṣṇu-tattva is also Kṛṣṇa’s aṁśa, part and parcel. Yasya kalā-viśeṣaḥ. Kalā-viśeṣaḥ means part, part of the part, kalā. Aṁśa, and aṁśa’s aṁśa, that’s called kalā-viśeṣo. So that kalā-viśeṣa, Kṛṣṇa, Mahā-Viṣṇu, He’s creating millions and millions of universes. So just imagine what is the creative power of Kṛṣṇa.

Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja says, idaṁ sad-asad-īśa (SB 7.9.31). Sad-asat, kārya kāraṇa, cause and effect. Just like you have got a cloth. Cloth is made of cotton. So from cotton we prepare thread, and from thread we prepare cloth. So when the cloth is there, the thread has disappeared. When the thread is there, the cotton has disappeared. Thus they are called sad-asat. Sat means which is existing, and asad means which is no longer existing. So this material world is asat. It is simply for the time being an exhibition. So we have to find out the real existence, sanātana existence. That is Kṛṣṇa. We should not be bewildered by seeing this temporary manifestation. Anything material is temporary. It has a date of creation. Everything, whatever you see here in the . . . just like this microphone: it has got a date of creation, it will work for some time; and then it will go out of order, and we shall throw it in the street and again it will disappear in the earth, because everything has come out from the earth. This is material world. But we must find out what is the reality. We should not be bewildered by the temporary things. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to take the living entity from this temporary world to the spiritual world, or to the permanent world, where there is no more annihilation. It is eternal, nitya. Nityaḥ śāśvataḥ (BG 2.20).

So we living entities, we are eternal. This is māyā, that I am thinking “I am this body.” This is our ignorance. So the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to deliver the human society from this ignorance, temporary things: “I am this body. This is my country. This is my wife. This is my children. This is . . . this is mine. This is . . .” ahaṁ mameti (SB 5.5.8): “I am this body, and anything in reference with the body is mine.” But actually there is no such thing. This is called māyā. Real thing is, the reality, is Kṛṣṇa, Brahman, Para-brahman. All other things . . . therefore Vedic injunction is, “Don’t try to remain in this temporary situation.” Asato mā sad gamaḥ (Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad 1.3.28): “Don’t remain this . . .” But we are so ignorant, our present civilization is so foolish, that they do not know what is sat and what is asat. They want to stay in the asat. They want to make arrangement to stay in this asat, temporary things, forgetting that however nicely you make arrangement in this temporary material world, you’ll not be allowed to stay. This is our ignorance. Mūḍha nābhijānāti mām ebhyaḥ param avyayam (BG 7.13). Kṛṣṇa says, “These rascals, mūḍha, they do not know what is the permanent stage, sanātana.” That is wanted. That is human knowledge. One should know the permanent, not be bewildered by the temporary things. That is ignorance.

Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja says, yad ātma-para-buddhir iyaṁ hy apārthā (SB 7.9.31). This is misconception, ātma-para-buddhiḥ. Ātmā means “mine,” and para means “others.” Where is “my” and “your”? Everything Kṛṣṇa’s. Hy apārthā. This is misconception. But the whole world is going on on the basis of this ātma-para-buddhiḥ: “my country,” “my city,” “my building,” “my family,” “my, my, my,” that’s all. And “my” and “your.” Neither your nor mine. It is all Kṛṣṇa’s, the different energies, manifestation of different energies. Just like fire. From fire, two energies are coming, and if we fight that this . . . you say, “The light energy is mine, and the heat energy is your,” that is foolishness. The heat and light, both of them, are coming from the fire. Everything belongs to the fire. But we are fighting: “Heat is mine, and light is your. Let us divide.” How you can divide? Parasya brāhmaṇaḥ śaktiḥ. Everything is manifestation of energy. Parasya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate (CC Madhya 13.65, purport). We see in the garden so many flowers, different color, different flavor, different utility. But wherefrom it is coming? It is coming from this earth. We do not know even how much inconceivable energies are there within this earth. We do not know. Where is the scientist? They are very much proud of their scientific knowledge. Let them say how many varieties of things are within this earth. They analyze the earth. What do they find? They see only sixty percent soda bicarb. No. There are many, many finer chemicals. Who is that rascal who can say that so many things are there, “This is soda bicarb”? And this is scientific, that’s all. Nobody is scientist; all fools and rascals, mūḍhā. They do not know anything. Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, “I am this.” That is the actual fact. But His energies are so, mean, manifestedly variegatedness energy. You’ll find so beautiful world. It is condemned place. Still, you see, by Kṛṣṇa’s energy the world is so beautiful—so many trees, so many flowers, so many fruits, so many varieties of life, so many varieties of human beings. This is Kṛṣṇa: varieties. Parasya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate sva-bhāvikī . . . and every energy is acting automatically. You give the seed, sow the seed on the earth, and automatically the flower, flavor, beauty—everything will come automatically. There will be no . . . there is no question of accidents. The so-called scientist, they cannot explain. “Accidents.” Why accidents? A rose flower seed, rose will come. Why not accident by, lemon? No. There is no such things as accidents. This is all rascaldom. Everything is going on . . . parasya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate sva-bhāvikī jñāna-bala-kriyā ca. In the energy there is automatic knowledge and activities, and they are being manifested.

So Prahlāda Mahārāja says that “Everything, variety, is there, but . . .” Tvaṁ vā idaṁ sad-asad bhavān: “Except Yourself, to conceive anything else, that ‘Beyond Kṛṣṇa there is anything,’ that is māyā.” That is māyā, illusion. There is nothing except Kṛṣṇa. Therefore those who are advanced devotees, they do not see anything; simply Kṛṣṇa in everywhere. Sthāvara-jaṅgama dekhe nā dekhe tāra mūrti, sarvatra sphūraya tāñra iṣṭa-deva mūrti (CC Madhya 8.274). A devotee sees a tree, but he does not see the tree. He sees: “It is Kṛṣṇa’s energy.” Immediately he remembers Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. When every step you’ll simply see Kṛṣṇa, that is Kṛṣṇa . . . that is possible, provided you follow the footstep of Prahlāda Mahārāja. That will be possible. Or devotees. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ (CC Madhya 17.186). That is the way. If you speculate nonsensically, it will be not possible. If you follow the devotees, mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ, then you’ll be successful.

Thank you very much.

Devotees: Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda. (end)